ICC amends interval rules

19 June 2008

Paul Collingwood and Brendon McCullum discsuss the matter at Edgbaston

The England and Wales Cricket Board and New Zealand Cricket approached the International Cricket Council on June 19 to seek an amendment to the standard ICC one-day international playing regulations for the remainder of the NatWest Series currently being played in England.

The amendment mirrors the ECB’s playing conditions for domestic one-day matches in England and allows for the interval between innings to be reduced in weather-interrupted matches.

The ICC has agreed to the ECB and NZC’s proposal and the amended regulation will be utilised at the remaining three NatWest Series ODI matches to be played at Bristol, the Brit Oval and Lord’s.

The appropriate section of regulation 15.1 of the ICC regulations will be replaced with the following wording: "Where the innings of the side batting first is delayed or interrupted, the umpires will reduce the length of the interval.

"In the event of time being lost (playing time lost less any extra time provided) up to and including 60 minutes in aggregate, the length of the interval shall be reduced from 45 to 30 minutes. In the event of more than 60 minutes being lost in aggregate, the duration of the interval shall be agreed mutually by the umpires and both captains subject to no interval being of more than 30 minutes duration or less than 10 minutes duration. In the event of disagreement, the length of the interval shall be determined by the ICC match referee."

ECB chief executive David Collier commented: "While we recognise that this regulation was due for consideration at the ICC meetings scheduled for the end of this month the current NatWest Series is concluded on June 28, 2008.

“Both ECB and New Zealand Cricket felt strongly that the regulation should be amended forthwith for the remainder of our series and we are grateful to ICC for ratifying our proposal.”